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Home > Secure Sockets Layer
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Secure Sockets Layer (SSL): How It Works |  |
| Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology secures your Web site by encrypting information and providing authentication.
You need SSL if...
…you have an online store or accept online orders and credit cards.
…your business partners log in to confidential information on an extranet. …you process sensitive data such as address, birth date, license, or ID numbers. …you need to comply with privacy and security requirements. …you value privacy and expect others to trust you.
Public and Private Keys to Privacy
An SSL Certificate consists of a public key and a private key. The public key is used to encrypt information and the private key is used to decipher it. When a browser points to a secured domain, a secure sockets layer handshake authenticates the server and the client and establishes an encryption method and a unique session key. They can begin a secure session that guarantees message privacy and message integrity.
Not All Encryption Is Created Equal
Without an SGC-enabled certificate in place, Web site visitors using certain older browsers and many Windows 2000 users will only receive 40- or 56-bit encryption. VeriSign is the leading SSL provider of SGC-enabled SSL Certificates, enabling 128- or 256-bit encryption to over 99.9% of Web site visitors. (SGC: Strongest SSL Encryption.)128-bit encryption offers 288 times as many possible combinations as 40-bit encryption. That’s over a trillion times a trillion times stronger.
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